Time switch



I c. E. SUNDBERG Z TIME SWITCH Filed Dec. 20, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet l EMWLWW C1 E. SUNDBERG TIME SWITCH Filed Dec. 20, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 m W W w. 119% A MW w, r W 4 ..L 4 4 Patented May 26, 1936 UNITED STATES TIME SWITCH Carl E. Sundberg, Quincy, Mass, assignor to Albert & J. M. Anderson Manufacturing Company, Boston, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application December 20, 1930, Serial No. 503,797

11 Claims. (01. 185-40) This invention relates to a time switch and is herein shown as embodied in a time switch of the type illustrated and described in United States Patent No. 779,249 dated January 3, 1905.

One object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved construction of time switch of the character specified in which provision is made for controlling the operation of the switch to prevent its being opened or closed when the spring motor 19 of the switch operating mechanism has been unwound to a predetermined extent.

A further and more specific object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved construction of time switch having a stop mechanism for controlling the operation of the switch member when the spring motor has been unwound to a predetermined extent, and in which provision is made for facilitating the variation in the numher of operations of the time switch before the stop mechanism becomes effective.

With these objects in view and such others as may hereinafter appear, the invention consists in a time switch provided with a stop mechanism substantially as hereinafter described and particularly defined in the claims at the end of this specification.

In the drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a time switch with the outer portion of the usual casing removed;

Fig. 2, a rear elevation of the switch-operating mechanism, stop mechanism and associated parts in one position of operation;

Fig. 3, a similar view with the parts in a diiierent position of operation, as will be described,

Fig. 4, a detail in section on the line 4-4, Fig. 3.

Figs. and 6, detail views to illustrate the engagement of the arms I4, I5 with the time dial; 40 Fig. 7, a side elevation of the disk 51 and the switch-operating .rod 41];

Fig. 8, a plan of Fig. '7, and

Fig. 9, a detail in section to illustrate the sleeves carrying the tripping dogs or cams.

45 In general time switches of the character illustrated and described in the abovementioned Patent No. 779,249 .of January 8, 1905, comprise one or more switch members arranged to be operated to open and close a circuit intermittently 50 by switch-operating mechanism including a spring motor. Theswitch-operating mechanism is controlled. in its operation by a clock mechanism so that in the operation of the time switch, the switch members are periodically opened and 55 closed.

In accordance with the present invention provision is made for controlling the operation of the switch-operating mechanism when the spring motor has become .unwound to a predetermined 60 extent, to the end that the switch may not reach a condition where thespring motor becomes too weak for effecting proper operation of the switch with the accompanying liability of the switch being burnt out.

For this purpose the time switch is provided 5 with a stop mechanism, preferably arranged to permit convenient alteration of the ratio of cooperating gears forming a part thereof, so as to permit variation of the period of time which may elapse before the stop mechanism becomes 0 operative, and to thereby render the time switch easily adapted to different conditions of use.

In some instances it is desirable that the time switch be designed so as to require rewinding every eight days, while in other instances it may be desirable that a period of nine or ten days elapse before rewinding is necessary, and the construction of the present switch is preferably such as to enable convenient alteration of co-operating gears in the stop mechanism for permitting this result to be accomplished.

Referring now to the drawings which illustrate the preferred embodiment of the invention, the time switch may and preferably will except as to details to be hereinafter pointed out, comprise the time switch illustrated in the Patent No. 779,249 above referred to, and in general such time switch comprises a clock mechanism I2 and a switch-actuating mechanism I3 whose operation is controlled by the hands I4, I5 of a time dial I6 geared to the clock mechanism and to the switch-actuating mechanism as illustrated in Fig. 1. The clock mechanism I2 is provided with the usual gear I! which meshes with a gear I8 formed on the periphery of the time dial I6 mounted upon a supporting shaft I9. The time dial I6 is provided with radial slots-20 into which bent ends or fingers formed on the extremity of the arms I4, I5 may be extended to effect rotation of the said arms with the time dial I6. The arms I4, I5 are loosely mounted upon the shaft I9, being mounted upon the ends of sleeves '22,

23 rotatably mounted with relation to each other and upon the supporting shaft I9. The sleeves 22, 23 carry tripping cams or dogs '24, 25, and provision is made, as will be .described, for controlling the operation of the switch-actuating mechanism by the tripping cams 24, 25.

As illustrated in Fig. 1, the switch comprises two switch units 28 of standard construction having the usual switch brushes 34 which areadapted in the closed position of the switch to make contact with fixed terminals 35, thus closing the .circuit controlled by the time switch. Each .movable member or switch unit 28 is mounted upon a lever 36 pivoted at 31 .upon a stationary bracket 38.

Provision is made for moving the switch .arms

36- to swing the switch members '28 into a position on to close the circuit at the contacts 35 and also to withdraw the switch members 28 from such position into an open position such as is illustrated in Fig. 1; and as herein shown see Figs. 1 and 7 a bar or rod 40 is provided forming a connection between the switch-actuating mechanism I3 and the switches, and which is raised and lowered by the switch-actuating mechanism when the tripping dogs 24, 25 are moved into a definite position at each revolution of the time dial.

The connecting rod 40 is pivotally connected to toggle levers 42 and the center pivot 43 is arranged to engage and be guided in its movements in a slot 44 in the connecting rod 40.

Referring now to Figs. 2, 3 and 9 the switch-operating mechanism herein shown includes the tripping cams or dogs 24, 25 whose relative position may be adjusted by means of the hands I4,

I5 of the time dial to which the tripping dogs are respectively connected to move therewith and with relation to each other, so that at each cycle or revolution of the time dial the tripping cams or dogs 24, 25 will each be brought into contact with a finger 44 on an escapement lever 45 pivotally mounted upon a fixed shaft 46. The escapement member 45 is normally urged into a position in which the finger 44 is positioned in the path of the approaching tripping cams 24, 25 by a spring 4! attached to a fixed pin 48 on the frame, and to a pin 49 on the escapement lever 45.

The escapement lever is also provided with a finger 50 which is arranged to be engaged by the end of a detent lever 5| mounted upon a shaft 52 and retainedupon the shaft by a cotter pin 53 as shown.

The detent lever 5| is yieldingly urged by a spring-pressed plunger 54 against a lug 55 comprising one of two weighted lugs 55, 56 forming part of a disk 51 see Figs. 2, 3, '7 and 8 fixed upon the shaft 52 to rotate therewith. The shaft 52 is rotatably mounted in the supporting frame for the operating mechanism and is driven through suitable gears I58, I59 by the spring motor 3 I, the gears I58, I59 being conventionally indicated in Figs. 2 and 3.

From the description thus far it will be observed that when the escapement lever 45 is swung to the left (viewing Fig. 2) by either of the tripping cams 24, 25, the finger 50 will be removed from the path of one end of the detent lever 5|, thus permitting the spring motor 3| to effect through the driving shaft 52 the rotation of the weighted disk 51 in the direction of the arrow, and after the end of the detent lever 5| has passed the finger 50 it is engaged with a second finger 58 and then released therefrom by the spring 41 which returns the escapement lever into its normal position and brings the finger 50 into the path of the other end of the detent lever 5| to hold it from turning until again released by one of the tripping dogs 24, 25.

The rotation of the disk 51 is arrested by the engagement of the second end of the detent lever 5| with the finger 50 after the disk 51 has made one-half a revolution.

The described half-revolutions of the disk 51 are utilized in accomplishing the periodic opening and closing movements of the switch members 28 as above described, and to this end the disk 51 is provided with a stud 66 upon which the upper end of the connecting rod or arm 46 is hung see Figs. 2 and 7 so that upon one-half of each revolution of the disk 51 downward motion is imparted to the connecting rod 40 to effect a closing of the switch members 28, and upon the next half revolution of the disk 51 the rod 40 is lifted again, thus opening the switch members.

In order to control the operation of the switchactuating mechanism when the spring motor 3| has become unwound to a predetermined extent, the weighted disk 51 is provided with a stop lug or member III, which is arranged to co-operate with another stop lug or member I2 carried by an arm or lever I4 pivotally mounted upon the shaft I6 of the spring motor 3| and arranged as will be described to be moved into a position to engage the stop member ID when the arm I4 is raised or moved from the position shown in Fig. 2 into that shown in Fig. 3. The arm I4 is normally urged by a spring having one end connected to a pin 83 on the arm I4 and its other end to a fixed pin 84, into a position such as is shown in Fig. 2, in which the stop member I2 is withdrawn from the path of movement of the stop member 16, and

in this position the stop member I2 has no effect upon the normal revolution of the disk 51 by the spring motor 3| during the opening and closing of the switch members 28 as above described.

Provision is made for effecting the raising of the arm I4 by the spring motor 3| to bring the 25 stop member I2 into the path of movement of the stop member 10, to thereby prevent further rotation of the disk 51, and as herein shown such movement is imparted to the arm I4 by a pin on the inner side of a gear 82 loosely mounted on 30 a stud shaft 83. The pin 98 is arranged to engage a cam surface 94 on the underside of the arm I4 during the rotation of the gear 82 in the direction of the arrow 95 shown in Fig. 2. The

gear 82 is arranged to mesh with a pinion 96 35 mounted upon the shaft I6 to rotate therewith. The shaft I6 constitutes the winding shaft to which one end of the spring motor 3| is attached, the other end of the spring being attached to the barrel of the spring motor as is the usual practice. l

During the normal operation of the time switch, the shaft I6 is intermittently rotated by the spring motor 3| in a direction such as to cause the gear 82 and the cam pin 96 to move in the direction of the arrow 95 shown in Fig. 2, from the position shown therein until the cam pin 90 engages the cam surface 94 on the under side of the arm I4 and operates to raise the arm I4 and to move the stop lug I2 carried thereby into the path of the lug I0 upon the disk 51, thus preventing further movement of the disk 5'! and further operation of the time switch. It will thus be seen that when the spring motor 3| is released by the tripping dogs 24, 25, the spring motor 3| is unwound at its outer and inner ends, the outer end effecting rotation of the disk 5! and its attached stop member ID, and the inner end of the spring motor 3| effecting rotation of the shaft I6 and through the pinion 96 and gear 82 and pin 90 effecting movement of the second stop member I2 toward and into the path of the rotatable stop member ID. The lugs I6, I2 are arranged so that when engaged, the switch members 28 will be in their extreme open position, thus preventing the operation of the switch members 28 by the spring motor 3| when the latter is in a predetermined weakened condition and such as to be unable to move the switch members into their fully opened position, whereby any tendency or liability of arcing to occur between the brushes 34 and the contact members or terminals 35 and the maintenance of such an arc with the switch members 28 in an intermediate position, with liability of the switch being burnt out is avoided.

When the spring motor 3I. is to be rewound, the shaft I6 is turned by hand with the usual key, causing reverse movement of the gear 82 from the position shown in Fig. 3 to that shown in Fig. 2, and in order that the gear 82 may be revolved in such reverse direction indicated by the arrow 91 only until the cam pin 90 has been brought to a position such as is shown in Fig. 2, which may be considered its starting position, while permitting the spring motor -3I to be further wound up, if desired, the gear 82 is preferably mutilated to provide a blank space 98 arranged with respect to the position of the cam pin 90 on the gear 82, so that when the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 2 the pinion 96 may revolve idly in the blank 98 on further windingup of the spring motor 3| without effecting further revolution of the gear 82 in a reverse direction. This permits the spring motor 3| to be completely wound, and after the spring motor has become wound and the switch resumes its normal operation, the pinion 96 again picks up the teeth on the gear 82 and effects revolution of the gear 82 again in the direction of the arrow 95, shown in Fig. 2.

As illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4, the pinion 96 is provided with a square bore and fitted onto the squared end of the shaft 16 to rotate therewith. The pinion 96 is provided with an elongated hub I upon which the hub I02 of the arm I4 is loosely mounted, and a retaining collar I03 is secured to the hub of the pinion 96 sothat the pinion 96, arm 14 and collar I03 constitute a removable unit which is normally retained in operative position upon the end of the square shaft l6 by the gear 82 behind which the arm 14 is arranged to extend, as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3.

The gear 82 is herein shown as removably retained upon the shaft 83 by a cotter pin so that by removing the cotter pin and slipping off the gear 82 on the end of the shaft 83, the pinion 96, arm 14 and'collar I03 may then be removed.

From the description thus far, and by reference to Figs. 2 and 3, it will be observed that the number of times that the switch may operate on one winding of the spring motor is determined by the ratio of the gear 82 to the pinion 96; the larger the ratio, the greater the number of times it is possible for the switch to operate, and vice versa. It may be desirable that this ratio be varied according to the particular conditions of use to which the time switch is to be put, and in accordance with the present invention different sets of gears and pinions may be employed for accomplishing this purpose, and the present construction is such as to facilitate the substitution of difierent sets of the gear and pinion and without disturbing the standard construction of the remaining portions of the time switch.

As above described it is merely necessary to remove the cotter pin from the shaft 83 in order to enable both the gear 82 and the pinion 96, together with the arm 14, to be removed, so that the substitution of a new set of parts may be accomplished in a minimum time and at a minimum expense and without detracting from the operativeness of the remaining portions of the time switch.

In this manner it is possible to regulate the period within which the time switch may be operated before the stop mechanism becomes effective to adapt the time switch to different conditions of use.

In some instances it may be desirable to effect the opening or closing of the switch by a manually-operated tripping device, and as hereinshown such a tripping device comprises the release arm I04 secured to a shaft I05 and connected with a lever I06 mounted on said shaft at the front of the casing, as shown in Fig. 1. The lever I06 is held in a normal position by a spring I01,

and when the lever is thrown downward, the release arm I04 may be brought into contact with the 'finger 58 and manually trip the escape'ment lever 45 out of the path of the detent lever 5| and thus effect a manual tripping of the time switch.

It will be observed that the spring motormay be further manually wound after the pinion 96 ceases to rotate the gear 82, and as a result, it is assured that the spring motor 3| will be provided with sufiicient power to move the switch member 28 into its fully opened position at the time the stop member 12 is brought into the path of the stop member to arrest rotation of the disk 61 by the spring motor.

When the. stop members 10, 72 are in their operative relation shown in Fig. 3, the spring motor 3| is capable of having its inner end rewound by the operator turning the shaft 16 so as to turn the gear 82 in the direction of the arrow 95 in Fig. 2 and if the gear. 82 were not mutilated, the gear 82 would be continuously rotated until the spring motor was wound up to its initial condition.

During this rewinding of the spring motor, the lever or arm 14 would be oscillated toward and from the path of the rotatable stop member 12, until the operator ceased to turn the shaft l6.

Such continuous oscillation of the lever 14 may be avoided as herein shown by mutilating the gear 82 and providing it with the blank space 98, which is arranged to register with the pinion 96 at or about the time the pin 90 has passed beyond the high point of the cam 94 and into the position represented in Fig. 2.

Rotation of the shaft I6 can then be continued by the operator without rotating the gear 82, and the spring motor is further rewound at its inner end until it has been wound sufficiently to ensure proper operation of the switch by the unwinding of the outer end of the spring motor. It will thus be seen that one end of the spring motor is employed to operate the rotatable stop member 10, and the other end of the spring motor is employed to operate the oscillating stop member I2, and that the spring motor is rewound at the end which oscillates the second stop member.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been herein illustrated and described, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied in other forms within the scope of the following claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:-

1. In a time switch, in combination, a spring motor, a rotatable member connected therewith to be operated thereby, and stop mechanism including a stop member carried by said rotatable member and rotated by the unwinding of said spring motor, a co-operating stop member also operated by the spring motor to be movable by the unwinding of the spring motor into the path of the first-mentioned stop member and means for moving the cooperating stop member out of the path of the stop member carried by said rotatable device.

2. In a time switch, in combination, a spring motor, a switch-operating member connected therewith to be operated thereby, and a stop mechanism for controlling the operation of the switch-operating member comprising a'removable pinion driven by the spring motor, a removable gear meshing therewith and provided with a cam member, and a movable stop member adapted to be moved by the cam member when the gear has revolved a predetermined amount to move the stop member into operative position, said gear being mutilated to enable the spring motor to be wound without efiecting movement of the gear after the same has been returned to its initial operating position.

3. In a time switch, in combination, a movable switch member, a spring motor for moving it, and a stop mechanism for controlling the operation of said switch member by said spring motor, said stop mechanism having a member movable by the unwinding of said spring motor and a cooperating member movable toward the path of movement of the first-mentioned stop member by said spring motor when the latter is unwound at each operation of the switch member by said spring motor to render the spring motor inactive to operate said switch member when said spring motor has been unwound a predetermined amount less than its full amount.

4. In a time switch, in combination, a movable switch member, a spring motor for moving it, and a stop mechanism for controlling the operation of said switch member by said spring motor, said stop mechanism having a member movable by the spring motor and a cooperating member movable into its inoperative position When the spring motor is rewound and movable toward the path of movement of the first-mentioned stop member by said spring motor when the latter is unwound at each operation of the switch member by said spring motor, and means for enabling the winding-up of the spring motor to be continued without influencing the second stop member after the latter is in its inoperative position.

5. The combination with a spring motor, of a rotatable device driven by said spring motor, a switch member connected with said rotatable device to be operated thereby, a stop member carried by said rotatable device, a cam lever movable with relation to said rotatable device, a stop member carried by said cam lever, a gear rotated by the unwinding of said spring motor and a device carried by said gear and co-operating with said cam lever to move its stop member into position to be engaged by the stop member on the rotatable device and arrest rotation of the latter before the spring motor has been weakened to such extent as to be unable to move the switch member into its fully opened position.

6. The combination with a spring motor, of a rotatable device driven by said spring motor, a stop member carried by said rotatable device, a cam lever movable with relation to said rotatable device, a stop member carried by said cam lever, a gear rotated by the unwinding of said spring motor and a device carried by said gear and co-operating with said cam lever to move its stop member into position to be engaged by the stop member on the rotatable device and arrest rotation of the latter before the spring motor has been weakened to such extent as to be unable to move the switch member into its fully opened position.

'7. The combination with a spring motor, of a rotatable device driven by said spring motor, and a stop mechanism for said rotatable device comprising a member carried by said rotatable device,

a cam lever, a stop member carried by said lever, a mutilated gear driven by the unwinding of said spring motor and provided with means for moving said cam lever with relation to said rotatable device to bring the stop member on said cam lever into operative relation to the stop member on said rotatable device before the spring motor has been weakened to such extent as to be unable to move the switch member into its fully opened position.

8. In a time switch, in combination, a rotatable shaft, a spring motor having an end connected with said shaft to rotate the latter by the unwinding of the spring motor, a rotatable stop member, gearing connecting said rotatable stop member with said spring motor to enable said stop member to be rotated by said spring motor a plurality of times in the same direction when the latter is unwinding, a second stop member movable into and out of the path of the rotatable stop member, and gearing actuated by said rotatable shaft and operatively connected with said second stop member to eiiect movement of said second stop member into the path of the rotatable stop member by the unwinding of said spring motor.

9. In a time switch, in combination, a rotatable shaft, a spring motor having an end connected with said shaft to rotate the latter by the unwinding of the spring motor, a rotatable stop member, gearing connecting said rotatable stop member with said spring motor to enable said stop member to be rotated by said spring motor a plurality of revolutions in the same direction when the latter is unwinding, a second stop member movable into and out of the path of the rotatable stop member, and gearing actuated by said rotatable shaft and operatively connected with said second stop member to effect movement of said second stop member into the path of the rotatable stop member by the unwinding of said spring motor, said last-mentioned gearing including a mutilated gear to permi said rotatable shaft to be turned and wind up the spring motor without moving the second stop member into the path of movement of the rotatable stop mem- 10. In a time switch, in combination, a rotatable stop member, a second stop member movable into and out of the path of the rotatable stop member to arrest and permit rotation of the latter, and a spring motor operatively connected with both of said stop members to effect rotary movement of the rotatable stop member a plurality of revolutions in the same direction and movement of the second stop member into the path of the rotatable stop member by the unwinding of the spring motor.

11. In a time switch, in combination, a spring motor, a device rotatable a plurality of revolutions in the same direction by the unwinding of said spring motor, a stop member movable with said rotatable device, a second stop member movable by the unwinding of said spring motor into the path of the first mentioned stop member to arrest rotation of the first mentioned stop member when the spring motor has been unwound a predetermined amount.

CARL E. SUNDBERG. 

